Elon's reward for finding a gem of a mid-major player in freshman guard Elijah Bryant? Bryant is now off to BYU.
In an Instagram post on Tuesday, Bryant said, "I want to thank the one person who made this possible, my lord and savior Jesus Christ [prayer emoji]" below an altered photo of him a BYU uniform. Bryant was the CAA Rookie of the Year in 2014-15 after putting up 13.9 points per game in addition to leading the club in blocks and steals. He also averaged 4.2 rebounds and 2.7 assists.
A 6-foot-4 combo guard, Bryant enters a BYU program that is known for boosting the profiles and stats of its offensively oriented guards. Dave Rose's team has fared well over the past half-decade in creating a spacey offense that allows for volume shooting.
Credit Elon coach Matt Matheny for not publicly fighting this -- a la the Memphis situation with Austin Nichols -- despite the fact Bryant formally decided to leave the program very late into the offseason, on June 29. Bryant is the first player to transfer since Matheny became Elon's coach in 2009.
Bryant will redshirt next season and then be eligible to play in 2016-17.
